Speak To Me
by TheSecretCity
Summary: At the end of 'True Night', Hotch received a phone call from Haley. This is both sides of that conversation.
1. Haley

Haley

She didn't want to tell him to his face. Watching him crumble would be too hard. So she waited for the phone call that always came, at the end of every case.

"Hi, honey," even after everything, her moving to Jessica's and hardly seeing Jack, he still called her honey.

"Hi Aaron," she'd been much cooler with him, too.

"How are you? And Jack?"

"Aaron," she swallowed and closed her eyes. "Do you remember us getting married? The forever we promised, and everyone old in my family crying?"

"Yes."

He knew. She could feel it in his voice. My God, he _knew_.

"I can't live with your cases, Aaron. Jack shouldn't have to, either. What you do is dangerous and disgusting. I know-" she could hear him chuffing at the words. "I know someone has to do it. But it doesn't have to be you and you won't walk away. You've already proved that. You choose someone who had died over your wife and child."

He was silent.

"And I should've seen it coming, years ago. But I blinded myself because I didn't want it to be true. And it is. You won't make the right decision, so I have.

"In about a week, Aaron, I'll be sending you divorce papers. I've asked for sole custody of Jack. You can see him whenever you have time between cases. We'll keep the house. I'll stay with Jess until you move out. And I'd appreciate if you would just sign them and get it over with, Aaron, because taking it to court will be long, expensive, and hurt Jack to see his parents fight, okay?"

She knows he nodded. And then the phone went dead, and a dial tone was in her ear.

'_I refuse to die for love, my darling. Not yet'-_ Garrison Keillor, _Speak to Me_, 77 Love Sonnets


	2. Hotch

Hotch

On the plane, everyone was chatting. And he had just hung up on his wife. Soon-to-be ex-wife.

Haley was gone. And she had been hard with him. He probably deserved it, because she was right. But why now? It had only been after his suspension she'd become so insistent that he be at home more. He never had before, and the sudden presence for two solid weeks had reminded her what all other wives had. He couldn't give it to her. Someone else had.

He knew, of course. He was a profiler, it was his job to read people. She talked about being blind to his job. He had been blind to her affairs. Three men. Two before Jack, one after.

He was Jack's father. That he knew without a doubt. But she had never stopped. So he buried himself further into work each time a new man had happened. At least she'd never brought an affair home, especially after Jack.

Rossi shot him a 'you okay?' look from across the plane. Hotch gave him his best dirty look, the 'I am unit chief hear me roar' one that sent everyone, even Morgan, scurrying for cover. Rossi, being Italian, was impervious. He raised an eyebrow and went back to his book.

Just gone. Going, going, gone. Why the hell had she had affairs anyway? He'd done the right things, hadn't he? He had been there, mostly. And it wasn't as if she didn't have enough-a nice house, a traditional family, all the things she wanted and had talked about since high school. And even then she had quietly cheated on him, with college boys. Later it was bad boys-bikers, tattooists. She never had a man he was likely to meet. Discretion was her byword.

Not anymore. Now she could freely bring men home. And he would give Jack to her, because he always did what she wanted. Except leave the BAU. That was his last straw.

Rossi would find out soon enough. He already knew Hotch and Haley were separated. He'd probably already figured out what the phone call was about.

Damn him and all the rest, anyway.

'_Darling, I make this last stupid appeal-Look at me. Speak to me. Let's not be caught in a duel of silences.'-_Garrison Keillor, _Speak to Me_, 77 Love Sonnets

Author's Note: The poetry quoted is from a slender volume by Garrison Keillor called 77 Love Sonnets, which has some of the coolest modern sonnets I've ever read. I've only quoted from one here, but the whole book is good. I read _Speak to Me_ and could only think of Hotch at the end of 'True Night', when he hangs up the phone and looks angry. Just guessing that was when Haley said she wanted a divorce. Reviews?


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